ENCINITAS: Fires scorch brush near I-5

ENCINITAS -- A series of small fires charred brush along
northbound Interstate 5 near Manchester Avenue on Monday afternoon,
casting clouds of smoke over the freeway and forcing authorities to
close a lane briefly as firefighters doused the blazes.

Firefighters responded to reports of three or four small fires
burning on a hill near the freeway about 2:30 p.m., a NorthComm
dispatcher said.

The fires were out before 3 p.m. Their causes were not
immediately known.